Restoration and preservation of the historic cemetery at Heritage is an on-going project of the Heritage Plantation Historic Preservation Foundation. Last year, the cemetery was cleaned of overgrown brush and weeds and the wooden fence repaired and painted. After this accomplishment, the cemetery was dedicated. Web pages describing the restoration and dedication are in the Heritage web site archives. An effort to raise funds for a metal fence was started. Those efforts came to fruition with the result that a new fence and historical markers were purchased. Al S. single handedly removed the old wooden fence! On March 30, 2004 a group of Heritage residents gathered at the cemetery and installed the new metal fence.
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First, string for the fence alignment was carefully measured and strung and then holes for the posts were dug. |
 Some of us enjoyed this procedure more than others. |
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The second step was to put the fence posts into the holes and insert the fence sections. |
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However, it was much harder to square up the corner posts and level the fence at the same time. |
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We had to shorten two sections, at the front and the back, to make the cemetery fence the correct width. |
 Sometimes, but not often, we read the instructions. |
 And we had only one cut finger. |
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| The 'experts' said to put the dry concrete mix in the holes around the fence posts, add water and tamp it all down. | ||
| And last, but not least, the gate. The inhabitants don't need it but the golfers do. | ||
The gate had to be level and square. |
For this, we used all our gadgets. |
You should try the 'space-age' latch. |
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All in all, the group had a good time and did a good job. (Not everyone is in this photo). |
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After the fence was erected, a historical marker was placed at one corner. It looks like this: |
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There is information about True Blue Cemetery on web sites outside of the Heritage Plantation web site. For example, there is a web site listing details about the people who are buried in
True Blue Cemetery. |
| Sarah Vaux's grave marker is supported by bricks but this support is in bad shape. Nancy Rogers found someone who can burn oyster shells to make tabby that was used to construct the support. However, the Society needed to find authenic ballast bricks. Elaine and Ken Wadell spotted some near the marina. Nancy and Allen Rogers, Elaine and Ken Wadell and Doug Rohloff retrieved enough to repoint Sarah’s grave. Actually Doug did the wading in the mud and retrieved the bricks. (Nice to be young and strong -- thanks Doug). At one time there was a mill (probably corn) on the north side of the parking lot near the landing. Perhaps the bricks they found were part of its foundation. Who knows? The important thing is that they are indeed ballast bricks and identical to those at the cemetery. |
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 Doug digs bricks. |
 The bricks themselves. |
 The "brick finders." |
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